Every school has its share of needs, and while an outdated website might not seem like the most pressing issue for some busy school leaders, your site is a critical touchpoint for parents, students, and the community. You know it needs attention, but getting approval for a new school website can be a long, tough sell, especially when faced with tight budgets and competing priorities.

Administrators and CFOs are driven by two main considerations: return on investment (ROI) and risk. They want to know that every dollar spent contributes to your school's success and minimizes potential downsides.

But can you shift the conversation? Instead of presenting the cost of a new school website as a “problem” to solve, think of the project as an opportunity, like an investment that supports your school's mission.

When you show them how a new website meets these standards, you make it easier for them to say "Yes."

Understanding the Decision-Makers: ROI and Risk Mitigation

Decision-makers are less likely to turn down a project when they see it as an essential tool that advances your school’s goals and creates very little financial risk. When you're convincing leaders to invest in a new school website, especially those in charge of finances and budgets, you need to clearly show the value.

They think in terms of costs, benefits, and risks.

It's not enough to say, "The website stinks, it needs updating," at every weekly meeting. You need to show why a school website redesign makes sense.

Show them how a modern, well-designed website can drive enrollment, streamline communication, and better protect the school from risks like ransom attacks and accessibility complaints. Explain that maintaining an old website may seem cheaper in the short term, but often carries hidden costs that are much more expensive than a proactive redesign.

The Risk of Doing Nothing

Every decision, including the decision to do nothing, carries risk. While keeping an outdated website might seem like a safe bet, it carries its own set of problems, like a poor user experience, lower enrollment, less engagement, and fewer donations. These risks aren’t always immediately visible, but they add up, affecting your school's reputation and bottom line.

Make these risks tangible by putting them in terms administrators understand, like lost revenue, potential accessibility complaints, or additional costs down the road.

Calculate and Communicate the Risks

Numbers speak louder than words, so use data to quantify the risks of keeping an old website. Look at website traffic statistics, user feedback, and enrollment data.

• How many families have you lost because the website was slow or hard to use?
• How many complaints have there been because important information was buried or outdated?
• How many gifts or inquiries were lost because a donor or family didn’t feel inspired to act?

Time for some math!

Enrollment and Engagement Losses

Let's use some easy numbers...suppose your school's website attracts 10,000 visitors per year. Out of these, only 2% (200 visitors) completed an inquiry form. With an outdated website, you might find that this conversion rate is low compared to the industry average, which could be closer to 5%. This means your school is potentially missing out on 300 inquiries each year.

So over the course of a year, your school could receive 300 additional inquiries, and if 5% of those additional inquiries result in actual enrollments, that translates to 15 new students, which is more than enough for your school to fund a new website.

“The redesign process was collaborative and thoughtful, with the Finalsite team translating our vision into a dynamic, engaging online presence,” shared Jennifer Loprinzo, Director of Marketing and Communications at Canterbury School. “The impact on our ability to engage mission-aligned prospective families has been extraordinary. In the first year with our newly designed site, we saw a 20% increase in applications—a testament to the site’s ability to convey who we are and what we stand for, drawing families who connect with our values and aspirations."

Compliance and Legal Risks

If your website isn't ADA-compliant, it could expose the school to lawsuits. In 2023, there were over 8,200 lawsuits, with settlements often ranging from $5,000 to $20,000 or more, depending on the severity and duration of non-compliance.

Suppose your school faced even a single lawsuit with a moderate settlement cost of $10,000. This doesn’t include legal fees, which can easily add another $20,000 to $30,000. That's at least a $30,000 hit to your budget—money that could have gone toward educational programs, staff retention, or school improvements.

Compare this to the cost of a new website, and the investment in a new website is easier to justify.

How do I Get Approval for a New School Website? | Building Your Argument

Break your argument into clear, logical steps to help administrators see the value of your proposal. Using the Toulmin Method, a framework for creating an argument, can help frame your pitch.

Claim: A New Website is an Investment in Your School's Future

• A new website is a strategic move that supports your school’s growth, enhances communication, and builds its reputation. It’s an investment that pays dividends with increased enrollment, improved community engagement, and the reduced threat of potential cyber threats.

Keep Reading: Creating the Perfect Pitch: How to Gain Support for a New Website

Grounds: Data Showing Your Website is Falling Short

Your school's website design may be underperforming in important areas:

• Low Engagement Rates: Review your website analytics. If the average time spent on your site is less than one minute or if the bounce rate is above 70% where you wouldn't expect it, it indicates a poor user experience or that your content/design may not be engaging enough.
   
• Complaints from Parents and Staff: Gather feedback from parents, teachers, and the school community. Frequent complaints about difficulty finding important information, broken links, or outdated content are red flags.

Warrant: Why This Data Matters

The data matters because a poor website experience directly affects:

• Enrollment Numbers: A difficult-to-navigate website discourages prospective families from exploring more about your school or submitting inquiries. More than 60% of us will go to another site if we don’t find what we’re looking for within five seconds. If parents can’t easily find the information they need, such as tuition fees or the application process, they are likely to move on.
   
• Parent Satisfaction: Your website often gives parents the first impression of your school. If it feels outdated or hard to use, it can lower their confidence in your school's ability to provide a modern, high-quality education. Nearly 90% of users won’t return to a website after a bad experience.
   
• Staff Efficiency: Teachers and staff also rely on the website to communicate with parents, share resources, and update school news. A clunky or outdated website means they spend more time troubleshooting issues or handling complaints, which distracts them from their day jobs.

Backing: Real-World Examples and Supporting Evidence

Use real-world examples and case studies from other schools that saw benefits from a website overhaul. Show quotes, survey results, or industry reports that back your claim.

After The Heritage School’s redesign, the school saw three times the number of inquiries within a year. “The website is far beyond our expectations,” the school shared. ”With every data point, we are seeing increased traffic and engagement with our site.”

Qualifier: Likelihood of Success Based on Data

Based on the outcomes from other schools, the likelihood of success is high.

• Benchmark Success Stories: Schools that have invested in mobile-friendly, accessible, responsive designs typically report significant improvements in key areas like engagement, enrollment, and community trust.
   
  • For example, when Nanjing International School redesigned its site, it soon saw a 15% increase in application conversions, a 25% Increase in website traffic, and a 30% increase in website engagement.
     
  • Similarly, St. Louis University High School's website, in conjunction with its enrollment management system, gave the school some impressive results, like the 56% conversion rate from inquiries into applicants, which resulted in 259 new students on campus and a waitlist for the first time in a decade.

Rebuttal: Addressing Potential Objections

If administrators are focused on how much a school website costs or timing, answer with facts about the long-term savings and the urgency of current risks.

• Cost Concerns: Highlight that while the initial investment may seem high, the long-term savings and benefits outweigh the costs.
   
• Timing Issues: If the timing feels wrong because of other budget priorities, suggest a quieter time of the year for the project, although...

“There is never an 'ideal' time to conduct a website redesign,” shared Father Ryan High School, whose site design won Gold in the Vega Digital Awards. “Don’t let specific expectations of when you want your site to go live, such as during the beginning of the school year or at the beginning of your admissions cycle, hold you back from launching your new website.”

Keep Reading: When’s the Best Time to Launch a New School Website?

Key Takeaway

When pitching a new website, focus on its potential to solve problems, not just its costs. Show how other schools have seen success with similar initiatives and that this isn’t a gamble but a planned step forward. With a new, effective school website, you could increase enrollment, improve communication, and build stronger relationships with your community.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Connor has spent the last decade within the field of marketing and communications, working with independent schools and colleges throughout New England. At Finalsite, Connor plans and executes marketing strategies and digital content across the web. A former photojournalist, he has a passion for digital media, storytelling, coffee, and creating content that connects.